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CHANGE IS THE RULE OF LIFE !!!

Kin- Hin is closed at the moment as I returned to England March 2014 to take some ‘time out’ of India and to care for my mother. The centre will not be open for the coming season 2014/2015… Send me an email if you would like to be kept informed of events, want any suggestions on where to stay or are interested in having me join you as a guide in India.

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Thank you for coming to this page and I hope you will come to Kin-Hin centre.

Kin-Hin is a zen meditation centre established in the summer of 2012 and inaugurated by Zen Master AMA Samy on December 10th 2012.

Kin-Hin is the ideal place to come for a relaxing holiday away from tourist crowds yet close to the beaches of Kovalam. You can experience village life and get helpful information and tips from your English host Karen. Karen is a meditation teacher, massage therapist and a qualified Laughter Yoga instructor living in India since 1997.

You are most welcome to attend ‘sittings’ (free of charge) for it was said by Koun Yamada in his book The Gateless Gate that “to sit zazen alone is so difficult it is almost impossible. For effective Zazen it is very important to practise sitting with a group, at least occasionally, if you want to get results”.

The centre is located just outside Kovalam; by Kovalam Junction and a short ride or a 20 min walk to Kovalam beach; 12 kms Trivandrum city and 5 minute walk to the Samudra beach area.

HOME STAY. Kin-Hin (being a private home) is primarily a non-residential Zen centre, although accommodation is available for house guests in a 3 bedroomed self contained apartment on the ground floor for those that prefer to stay away from the main tourist area and experience Indian village life.

SOLO RETREATS and PERSONALISED COURSES are possibleon a one-to-one basis if you would like to experience/learn about meditation and zen practise privately.

Please feel free to contact me to discuss your requirements.

The main idea of the centre is to establish a regular Zen Meditation ‘sitting’ group, (free of charge and open to all), in the same tradition as taught at Bodhi Zendo; a residential zen centre in the hills of Tamil Nadu

At Kin-Hin we will follow the Soto practise of Shikantaza – the Japanese term for ‘just sitting’.

There is a daily practise: morning Zazen (meditation sittings) from 6.30am – 7.30am; two 25 minute sittings that one can join at ‘kinhin’(the walking meditation between the sittings.)

In keeping with spiritual custom, I do not wish to make any charge for the daily meditation practise. In order to help the centre grow and to keep it running, donations of any amount will be gratefully received.

A little about me; my name is Karen and I came to India in 1997 for a three week holiday and decided to make Kerala my home. For 10 years I ran yoga & massage holidays in Kovalam. From 2007 until mid 2012, I lived, worked, served and followed Zen at Bodhi Zendo, blessed to have guidance and support from Zen Master AMA Samy.I had thought I might never leave Bodhi Zendo, yet the time did come for for me to move on, return to the ‘marketplace’ and begin a new chapter with ‘Kin-Hin’.

Aromatherapy Massage treatments are given at Kin-Hin for a nominal charge. I am a qualified aromatherapist with over 18 years’ experience. My diploma in Holistic Aromatherapy was obtained from The Tisserand Institute in London in 1993.

This website will grow as the centre evolves. Meanwhile here is a good Zen story for you – Inner Archery

Early in this century a Japanese Zen master who lived in a temple in the country had as his pupil the wife of the greengrocer of near-by village. Among his other pupils was a Cabinet Minister, who used to visit him once a week to sit in meditation for two hours then have an interview. A newspaper sent a reporter to visit teacher, and the pressman remarked, ‘Why do you waste your in a remote place like this? Wouldn’t it be better to come near the capital? Then instead of the greengrocer’s wife, you could have more pupils like the Cabinet Minister.’

In his article, the reporter described ruefully how the teacher had scolded him for this remark. ‘It is not a question of being the green- grocer’s wife or being a Cabinet Minister, but of not being a green- grocer’s wife and not being a Cabinet Minister.

We teach archery here. She has to shoot herself out of being the greengrocer’s wife into the Buddha-nature which she really is, and he has to shoot himself out of being a Cabinet Minister into the Buddha-nature which he really is. And it may very well be,’ added the master, ‘that it will be easier for her to shoot herself out of being “only the greengrocer’s wife” than it will be for him to shoot himself out of being “His Excellency the Cabinet Minister”.